


A Glimmer of Hope

by WatercolorSunrise



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Angst but like with a bit of positivity, Gen, Hopefulness, Hospitalization, Mental Illness, Mentions of religion, Nostalgia, Past Brainwashing, Post Seven Good End, Secret Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-11
Updated: 2019-09-11
Packaged: 2020-10-14 16:16:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20603675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WatercolorSunrise/pseuds/WatercolorSunrise
Summary: This fic takes place while Saeran is in the hospital after Mint Eye in during the secret endings. I imagine this time would have been pretty hard on Seven so I wanted to portray that while also giving him a sliver of hope. Hope you enjoy!This was written for Saeyoung Week 2019 on Tumblr for the prompt Nostalgia.





	A Glimmer of Hope

Saeyoung pulls into the hospital’s parking garage for what feels like the 100th time. He feels like he almost lives here. He was here just 10 hours ago but he needed a shower and MC had made sure he’d at least slept in his own bed for a few hours and ate something, not from a vending machine or food court. She was too good to him, too good _for_ him but she had made it abundantly clear she wasn’t going anywhere. Even with the whirlwind that their relationship had been so far, she was his rock. She didn’t deserve to have her new boyfriend gone almost all day every day, visiting his brother who undoubtedly didn’t even want to see him. Nonetheless, she stays, he’ll never be able to repay her.

He turns off the ignition and gets out, triple checks his baby is locked. He purposely parked in a deserted area of the garage under a camera so that he can check on it throughout the day. After all, there isn’t usually much to do after Saeran’s gotten tired of screaming at him or attempting to murder him. Not that he cares, if it makes Saeran feel better it’s worth it. It’s what he deserves anyway for trusting V and Rika with the only real family he had ever had.

He drops his keys in his pocket as he walks through the sliding, tempered glass doors into the lobby of the hospital’s psychiatric department.

“Good Morning Mr. Choi” The receptionist greets him brightly, but with a sympathetic look on her face. “Ready to give it another shot already?”

He gives her the best smile he can, “You know me Eunju, I’m a glutton for punishment, and please, Saeyoung is fine.” His own name still feels foreign on his lips, but he and Jumin are paying enough hush money to this hospital and its employees, he should be safe to use it.

He signs in waits to be buzzed in through the thick metal doors. He hates this place. He knows his brother hates it too. Then again he’s not really sure what his brother doesn’t hate, or who he is at all.

Saeyoung’s chest tightens as he approaches his brother’s door. It has a one-way mirror on it so that people outside can observe the room without being seen. He pauses and peers through the glass at his other half.

Saeran appears to be sleeping, in fact, this is probably the most peaceful he’s seen him since they got him out of Mint Eye. Saeyoung smiles briefly before he hears someone approach behind him.

“We had to sedate him last night, again.” Dr. Park says grimly.

Saeyoung’s smile fades quickly. “Ah. I see.”

“He should be out for a while, but you can go in if you want. Maybe spend time with him where he’s not trying to hurt himself, or the people around him” The doctor says in a short tone.

“Hah, yea.” Is all he can say, guilt weighing hard on him once again. This is his fault. It’s all his fault.

“Fair warning, if he does wake up the drugs may have him a little… loopy.”

He opens the door slowly, as to not wake Saeran. If that’s even possible. Saeyoung hates the idea of more drugs being pumped through his brother’s body but he has to believe there was no other choice.

He quietly moves a chair over to his brother’s bedside and sits, leaning forward on his elbows as he studies the man.

His skin is so pale, almost translucent. His checks are unhealthily gaunt. Saeran had never had enough to eat and it was unbearably noticeable. It would seem he was starving while Saeyoung stuffed his face with soda and chips and whatever else he could find. Not healthy, but food is food. Even now Saeran was denying food from the hospital, he refused to eat and so he was on a feeding tube whenever the hospital could manage to prevent him from ripping it out. Guilt wells up in Saeyoung again, he’s pretty sure it’s made a permanent home in his chest.

He sits there, just watching his brother for a while, he’s not sure how long really. He watches as a strand of white and pink-ish hair falls unto his brother’s nose, twitching silently with each breath. Impulsively, Saeyoung reaches out and brushes the hair back on Saeran’s head.

Saerans eye’s open, just a slit. Saeyoung quickly sits back down, preparing for the outburst of insults about to be thrown at him.

“Saeyoung?” Saeran croaks out, voice heavily laden with sleep.

Saeyoung’s eyes open wide as he stares in disbelief at the younger twin. He hasn’t called him anything except “The Traitor” and other more colorful names since they found him.

“It’s me, Saeran. I’m here” Saeyoung responds, trying his damnedest to not get his hopes up.

“You’re back.” His brother mutters, a small smile gracing his face. A smile Saeyoung hasn’t seen in years. It’s not one of the maniacal smiles Saeyoung has seen on him through his bits of taunting laughter, no. This is a smile he used to see every day. The one Saeran would give him when he returned from errand runs, or when Saeyoung would take him outside to see the sky without their mother knowing. The one that graced his face when he’d share snacks he’d bring home after Mass, or the first time they shared popsicles together.

Saeyoung doesn’t even realize he’s crying until he feels a warm drop fall on his wrist. He quickly pushes up his glasses and wipes his face on his t-shirt. At this moment He feels a longing. Longing for a time long past. A time that admittedly wasn’t great. No, not by any definition of the word but one thing was great - their relationship. Their brotherly bond. The feeling of nostalgia is not such a familiar one to Saeyoung, there isn’t much in his past he yearns for. But he yearns for their relationship to be repaired so much it hurts. “Yea, I’m back.”

“Saeyoung, I’m so hungry.” Saeran mutters, punctuated with a small groan.

Saeyoung pats his pockets in search of a small snack, sometimes MC hands him fruit snack packages or granola bars on his way out the door but alas, they are empty.

“I can go get you something real quick.” He offers

Saeran’s face twists up into a grimace just briefly. “P-promise you’ll come right back?”

He’s letting me make promises? Saeyoung thinks to himself “I promise, I’ll be right back.”

Saeyoung darts out of the room and looks down both ends of the hallway. Down the corridor, he spots a food cart, momentarily unattended. He walks casually by and glances into the room, the Dietary Aide seems to be in a long-winded discussion with an elderly patient. Perfect He thinks. Stealthily he raises the cover over one of the food trays spotting a jello cup and a roll on a plate, two things he can grab quickly. Stealing food for Saeran? Yea, this definitely feels nostalgic, and it feels good. He pockets both items and returns to his brother’s room.

“Saeyoung?” Saeran asks again, the same tone of disbelief in his voice as before.

“Hey, I’m back, just like I said. I’ve got bread and jello. Do you like jello?”

“Mhm, is sweet.” Is all his brother says as he actually sits up.

Saeyoung can barely contain his excitement and he hands his brother the small roll.

“Just like when we were kids right?” Saeyoung says.

Saeran takes the roll and studies it for a second, sniffs it. “This. It’s ok to eat right? There’s nothing in it?”

Saeyoung doesn’t exactly know where that idea came from, isn’t exactly sure he wants to know either. “Yea, It’s all good. I can take a bite first if it will make you feel better?” he offers in earnest.

“S’ok, I trust you.” The younger twin responds, biting into the roll and chewing slowly.

_You do?!_ Saeyoung isn’t sure what has happened to his brother but this feels like a completely different person then he’s seen for the past few weeks.

Saeran finishes his roll and grabs the jello, making quick work of the sugary gelatin before laying back in his bed. He closes his eyes. “So sleepy” he mumbles out.

“Go to sleep then. You’re safe here.”

“You’ll stay?” Saeran says, cracking one eye the older twin.

“Of course. I’ll never give up on you.”

His brother hums in response before nodding off.

Saeyoung isn’t sure if this ‘break’ was a side effect of the drug, just a fluke, or something else but in any event, he’s filled with a new hope. Maybe Saeran will wake up similarly later? He doesn’t want to get ahead of himself. But. If it happened once, it can happen again, right?

In the silence of the hospital room with his brother fast asleep in the bed next to him, he prays. He prays for Saeran, just as he has every day for the past ten years.


End file.
